History of Forensic Science
The history of Forensic science i.e. applying "scientific" principles to legal questions has a long and intriguing history. Notable examples include:
In 44BC following the assassination of Julius Caesar the attending physician proclaimed that of the 23 wounds found on the body ‘only one’ was fatal.
In the 5th century Germanic and Slavic societies were believed to be the first to put down in statute that medical experts should be employed to determine cause of death.
In 1247 the first textbook on forensic medicine is published in China which among others things documents the procedures to be followed when investigating a suspicious death.
In medieval England pressure from the church halted the practice of hanging women thought to be pregnant. A convicted woman could escape the death penalty if she ‘pleaded her belly’ providing a physician could prove that she was in factpregnant.
Inspired by the study of anatomy medicolegal textbooks begin to appear by the end of the 16th century.
The 1887 coroners act ensured that an integral part of the coroners’ role was to determine the circumstances and the medical causes of sudden, violent and unnatural deaths.
Mathieu Orfila was a towering figure in the emergent field of forensics. Often called the "Father of Toxicology," he was the first great 19th-century exponent of forensic medicine. Orfila worked to make chemical analysis a routine part of forensic medicine, and made studies of asphyxiation, the decomposition of bodies, and exhumation. He helped to develop tests for the presence of blood in a forensic context and is credited as one of the first people to use a microscope to assess blood and semen stains. He also worked to improve public health systems and medical training.
Born a Spanish subject, on the island of Minorca, Orfila first studied medicine in Valencia and Barcelona, before going to study in Paris. His first major work, Traité des poisons tirés des règnes minéral, végétal et animal; ou, Toxicologie générale,
In 44BC following the assassination of Julius Caesar the attending physician proclaimed that of the 23 wounds found on the body ‘only one’ was fatal.
In the 5th century Germanic and Slavic societies were believed to be the first to put down in statute that medical experts should be employed to determine cause of death.
In 1247 the first textbook on forensic medicine is published in China which among others things documents the procedures to be followed when investigating a suspicious death.
In medieval England pressure from the church halted the practice of hanging women thought to be pregnant. A convicted woman could escape the death penalty if she ‘pleaded her belly’ providing a physician could prove that she was in factpregnant.
Inspired by the study of anatomy medicolegal textbooks begin to appear by the end of the 16th century.
The 1887 coroners act ensured that an integral part of the coroners’ role was to determine the circumstances and the medical causes of sudden, violent and unnatural deaths.
Mathieu Orfila was a towering figure in the emergent field of forensics. Often called the "Father of Toxicology," he was the first great 19th-century exponent of forensic medicine. Orfila worked to make chemical analysis a routine part of forensic medicine, and made studies of asphyxiation, the decomposition of bodies, and exhumation. He helped to develop tests for the presence of blood in a forensic context and is credited as one of the first people to use a microscope to assess blood and semen stains. He also worked to improve public health systems and medical training.
Born a Spanish subject, on the island of Minorca, Orfila first studied medicine in Valencia and Barcelona, before going to study in Paris. His first major work, Traité des poisons tirés des règnes minéral, végétal et animal; ou, Toxicologie générale,